Team India were primed for revenge

What started as a much anticipated Test series turned out to be a one-sided contest. Congratulations to MS Dhoni and his Indian team for an emphatic clean sweep. I am sure after losing the series in Australia 4-0 last year, they were primed for revenge and they executed their plans during the series perfectly.

The two very vastly different series results just go to show how difficult it is to win a Test series when travelling. India struggled with Australia’s fast bowling line-up on the bouncy wickets in Australia, while our batsman really did not cope with the turning wickets on the sub-continent. To win a series on the road your preparation needs to be perfect and even then you need a few things to go your way.

Unfortunately for the Australians, the top order batsmen did not cope. While most made contributions throughout the series at different times, the inability to put partnerships together really cost the Australians dearly. Too often, Australia would follow a partnership by losing another two or three quick top order wickets and then put themselves under pressure to build a competitive total.

Fortunately in most instances, the bowlers with the likes of Mitchell Starc and Peter Siddle were able to contribute with the bat and set decent totals, however India’s top order batsmen did a fantastic job in not only chasing down these totals but doing it extremely quickly. The speed in which they chased down Australia’s totals and set first innings leads put the Australian batting under increased second innings pressure, knowing there was so much time left in matches.In each game throughout the series, India won all the key moments. When you go back through each game you can identify a period where Australia were in with a real chance to put themselves in a position to win the game, but each time India came up with something special to take total control. Whether it was a double-century partnership or the Indian spinners taking quick wickets, they were able to put themselves in winning positions and be able to apply enormous pressure on the Australians.

So, where to from here for the Australians? Quite simply, the batsmen need to step up by the time they get to England. While the wickets will be different, they still have different challenges and the batsmen need to find a way to contribute and support Michael Clarke. The strength in the Australian team is no doubt its fast bowling and I am sure these guys will enjoy bowling in English conditions.

Congratulations to the Indian team on a great series. Let’s now call it 4-4 and we look forward to the next time these two great cricketing nations play each other.